[Andorion]

Living in a non-Western country, I was never really aware of food allergies being a widespread problem while growing up. A friend of mine could not eat eggs or shellfish, my SO is allergic to pinceapple and egg-whites - but to me these were isolated phenomena, rare exceptions.

But as I started spending more time on the internet I discovered that food allergies are far more serious than the occasional rash or upset stomach, they could literally kill. And to me it seemed that they were very prolific in the West with widespread peanut allergies, teachers in schools carrying epi pens for the students (I had no idea what an epi pen even was or that such a thing existed) people being lactose intolerant or following gluten free diets.

To me all of this was, and still to an extent is like a strange alien world. Almost no restaurants here seem to know or care about allergies. I have never heard of anybody being sick after eating peanuts, and peanuts are everywhere. Even if you go into the huge food markets in the malls and ask for gluten free stuff most people will look at you blankly.

So my question is, Are food allergies a more regional phenomena? Are they increasingly more prolific in recent times or is it that we can diagnose better with better technology? Why does food allergy seem to be such a huge thing in one part of the globe and be practically invisible elsewhere?

[Whisperzzzzzzz]

Specifically talking about peanut allergies, the most recent research points to it being an issue with lack of exposure during childhood — for most people.

Basically, a few kids had peanut allergies for whatever reason (these are the minority group). That got widespread media exposure and people started to avoid giving peanut-based products to all children with no history of peanut allergies. As those children aged, they seem to have acquired a peanut allergy due to the lack of exposure because of their parents being so cautious. So, it's sort of a vicious cycle — trying to avoid triggering peanut allergies actually made them more widespread.

This is partially supported by the most popular peanut allergy treatment these days, oral immunotherapy (i.e. titrating children's peanut consumption AKA feeding kids small bits of peanut until their allergy goes away).



Disclaimer: I'm not an allergy researcher. This is just my stupid interpretation of their research with some opinionated conclusions drawn.

EDIT: I also tend to believe the hygiene hypothesis of allergy formation, which fits in line with what I wrote above. A simple explanation of this hypothesis is that exposure to allergens and infections at a young age helps to strengthen and tune the immune system so that it doesn't overreact to common things later on in life.

This post has been edited by Whisperzzzzzzz: 25 August 2016 - 05:36 PM

[Mentalist]

Personaly, I feel it's a combination of things. There's the fact that you have better diagnostics, so things get spoken about. Then there's the "social acceptance" aspect- people talk about their medical issues and don't get shunned for them, the way the case can be in other parts of the world.

Thirdly there's the fact that the West's stint with antibiotics (where in the 2nd half of the 20th century literally everything was treated with them, including young kids, whose immune systems weren't developing properly due to the pills doing the body's job for it) also wasn't really great for population as a whole (super-bacteria evolving in response to the pills, and immune systems functioning out of whack).

There's also the conspiracy angle that pharma manufacturers perpetuate the acceptance and belief in food allergies and other "first world illnesses" (see also: depression) to sell more products.

Take your pick.

[Solidsnape]

Coeliac disease is hereditary and mostly misses a generation.
I'm lucky that gluten free diets are trendy atm, this makes it easier to get special products.
Also eating out is getting better too.
I hate to think what'll happen when the fad diet dies.

It does seem somewhat perverse to have people dying of starvation and people being allergic to the worlds most ubiquitous crops (I'm looking at you wheat and rye!!) all living on the same planet.
Any other Celiacs on the site?

[Andorion]

Whisperzzzzzzz, on 25 August 2016 - 05:32 PM, said:

Specifically talking about peanut allergies, the most recent research points to it being an issue with lack of exposure during childhood — for most people.

Basically, a few kids had peanut allergies for whatever reason (these are the minority group). That got widespread media exposure and people started to avoid giving peanut-based products to all children with no history of peanut allergies. As those children aged, they seem to have acquired a peanut allergy due to the lack of exposure because of their parents being so cautious. So, it's sort of a vicious cycle — trying to avoid triggering peanut allergies actually made them more widespread.

This is partially supported by the most popular peanut allergy treatment these days, oral immunotherapy (i.e. titrating children's peanut consumption AKA feeding kids small bits of peanut until their allergy goes away).



Disclaimer: I'm not an allergy researcher. This is just my stupid interpretation of their research with some opinionated conclusions drawn.

EDIT: I also tend to believe the hygiene hypothesis of allergy formation, which fits in line with what I wrote above. A simple explanation of this hypothesis is that exposure to allergens and infections at a young age helps to strengthen and tune the immune system so that it doesn't overreact to common things later on in life.

Mentalist, on 25 August 2016 - 05:36 PM, said:

Personaly, I feel it's a combination of things. There's the fact that you have better diagnostics, so things get spoken about. Then there's the "social acceptance" aspect- people talk about their medical issues and don't get shunned for them, the way the case can be in other parts of the world.

Thirdly there's the fact that the West's stint with antibiotics (where in the 2nd half of the 20th century literally everything was treated with them, including young kids, whose immune systems weren't developing properly due to the pills doing the body's job for it) also wasn't really great for population as a whole (super-bacteria evolving in response to the pills, and immune systems functioning out of whack).

There's also the conspiracy angle that pharma manufacturers perpetuate the acceptance and belief in food allergies and other "first world illnesses" (see also: depression) to sell more products.

Take your pick.

So, the sense I am getting is that while for some people food allergies are innate, a significant proportion of allergies are actually acquired and can possible be traced back to culturo-medical practices?

So I don't have any food allergies (that I know of) as my childhood was more or less a free for all in terms of food?

Also, with respect to hygiene and immunity, I have anecdotal evidence. When I was born, my family was super cautious about hygiene - they literally sterilised the utensils before mealtime before I was 1. I have a relatively weak immunity. My brother in contrast had a more rough and tumble childhood as my mother decided that such precautions were overkill and he is healthier than me.

[Primateus]

Are there really that many people with peanut allergy or is it just the "go to allergy" for movie makers, etc.?

[Coltaine -]

I'm not sure who said this to me, but in my opinion it is a good description. Due to the tons of pharmaceutics we get in contact with our immune system is underemployed and it reacts stronger to minor problems and unknown stuff, like peanuts if you have some kind of intolerance.

So less antibiotics and more dirt during and it is less likely for you to develop an allergy. Okay, this does not apply for everything. Lactose intolerance as an example has other reasons.

[Solidsnape]

I know Celiacs disease is a auto-immune deficiency disease.
So yeah, it's probably linked to hygiene in some distant human evolutionary past.

In pretty sure it's not a recent development though.
Just because we're unable to diagnose problems for what there are, doesnt mean they don't exist.
So it's possible that food allergies have existed for literally ages, and we've no way of knowing.
Just a thought.

[Mentalist]

When I was growing up, I had bronchitis with an asthmatic component. Among other things, it was triggered by allergic reactions to hay, grasses, and feathers (such as chicken feathers). This was hell for my dad's country-living relatives, since literally every pillow and blanket there was hand-made by stuffing chicken feathers together.

I don't recall much from those times, but my parents recount from time to time that my sickly childhood was not a lot of fun for them (and one of the principal reasons I ended up being the only child).

They never really explained where it came from (or where it went- after we moved to Canada, I had one attack, and then after I hit my teens I "outgrew" the condition).

I don't think it was the "hygiene" thing in my case (although I was essentially a "homebound" kid, and this had its effects on my social development later on, my immune system is generally fine, as I tend to be quite careless with stuff like scrapes, cuts, etc, but I don't suffer any immuno-deficiency related complications *knock on wood*), and I've had my share of childhood injuries (I cut up my head and needed to have my eyebrow stitched up before I was even a toddler).

So yeah, in some cases it's clearly congenital, or something to do with the environment (insert mandatory Chernobyl joke here). I don't think there's a "catch-all" explabation.

[Felisin Fatter]

At least with food there's a difference between sensitivities (causes rashes, pain, all kinds of discomfort) and allergies (can cause shock or suffocation and kill you). Sensitivities are often cross-linked. My SO for example, is sensitive to pollen (hayfever), nuts and pinda's (serious discomfort if he eats them, but no life threatening danger, can handle them in tiny quantities). A frien can't handle chocolate, pollen, strawberries or cats (again, serious discomfort, no epi-pen).
Some sensities are congenital, like gluten. And how most adult humans can't drink fresh cow milk without serious discomfort. Except the Dutch and the Masai, of whom 90% can drink as much milk as they want and feel fine.

[nacht]

My son has allergy to eating walnuts. You can pretty much see the effect. So it is not all imaginary for sure.
There is a genetic aspect to it. (a lot of chinese are lactose intolerant).
There also seems to be some environmental influence on the fetus and after birth. Probably a wild guess, but maybe there is a learning phase for the immune system to figure out what it considers as threats.

[Coltaine -]

Solidsnape, on 25 August 2016 - 06:27 PM, said:

I know Celiacs disease is a auto-immune deficiency disease.
So yeah, it's probably linked to hygiene in some distant human evolutionary past.

In pretty sure it's not a recent development though.
Just because we're unable to diagnose problems for what there are, doesnt mean they don't exist.
So it's possible that food allergies have existed for literally ages, and we've no way of knowing.
Just a thought.

I also believe that allergies and intolerances are no recent phenomen and probably existed always. So that is basically nothing to worry
But I think that they have increased in our time for some reasons.

Felisin Fatter, on 25 August 2016 - 07:37 PM, said:

At least with food there's a difference between sensitivities (causes rashes, pain, all kinds of discomfort) and allergies (can cause shock or suffocation and kill you). Sensitivities are often cross-linked. My SO for example, is sensitive to pollen (hayfever), nuts and pinda's (serious discomfort if he eats them, but no life threatening danger, can handle them in tiny quantities). A frien can't handle chocolate, pollen, strawberries or cats (again, serious discomfort, no epi-pen).
Some sensities are congenital, like gluten. And how most adult humans can't drink fresh cow milk without serious discomfort. Except the Dutch and the Masai, of whom 90% can drink as much milk as they want and feel fine.

Actually there are large exceptions. Roughly the population of Western and Northern Europe, their decendents all over the world, and other, smaller groups are mostly tolerant. According to wikipedia 25% of the adult population. Sweden, as an example, has a low intolerance rate of 2%

[Solidsnape]

I think it's time one of the many medical/scientific professionals on this site waded in to clarify the many vague and probably erroneous hypothesis put forward so far. (No offence intended posters - including myself!)

I would also love it if I'm the only freak (celiac) on board.

[Coltaine -]

Solidsnape, on 25 August 2016 - 08:24 PM, said:

I think it's time one of the many medical/scientific professionals on this site waded in to clarify the many vague and probably erroneous hypothesis put forward so far. (No offence intended posters - including myself!)

I would also love it if I'm the only freak (celiac) on board.

Actually I learned such things some years ago at the university. But I'm an evironmental scientist and no doctor, so I'm not sure if I remember the details correctly as I never needed this knowledge. Hopefully someone else remembers everything or I will have to search for my Campell.

[Mentalist]

I dunno how "adult" we talking about, but I was certainly drinking fresh cow milk up to my early teens. And naturally soured milk is a delicacy back home (Ukraine) in the country, and has been a yoghurt substitute for ages- for both kids and adults.

[Andorion]

Mentalist, on 25 August 2016 - 06:41 PM, said:

When I was growing up, I had bronchitis with an asthmatic component. Among other things, it was triggered by allergic reactions to hay, grasses, and feathers (such as chicken feathers). This was hell for my dad's country-living relatives, since literally every pillow and blanket there was hand-made by stuffing chicken feathers together.

I don't recall much from those times, but my parents recount from time to time that my sickly childhood was not a lot of fun for them (and one of the principal reasons I ended up being the only child).

They never really explained where it came from (or where it went- after we moved to Canada, I had one attack, and then after I hit my teens I "outgrew" the condition).

I don't think it was the "hygiene" thing in my case (although I was essentially a "homebound" kid, and this had its effects on my social development later on, my immune system is generally fine, as I tend to be quite careless with stuff like scrapes, cuts, etc, but I don't suffer any immuno-deficiency related complications *knock on wood*), and I've had my share of childhood injuries (I cut up my head and needed to have my eyebrow stitched up before I was even a toddler).

So yeah, in some cases it's clearly congenital, or something to do with the environment (insert mandatory Chernobyl joke here). I don't think there's a "catch-all" explabation.

This was basically me upto age 12-13 when the asthma disappeared and was replaced by nuclear level sneezing

[Andorion]

Mentalist, on 25 August 2016 - 10:50 PM, said:

I dunno how "adult" we talking about, but I was certainly drinking fresh cow milk up to my early teens. And naturally soured milk is a delicacy back home (Ukraine) in the country, and has been a yoghurt substitute for ages- for both kids and adults.

How? Just how? Even the smell of it makes me nauseous. I have no problem with milk products - I eat upwards of 500 ml sour curd daily but plain milk is horrible

[Mentalist]

Andorion, on 26 August 2016 - 01:41 AM, said:

Mentalist, on 25 August 2016 - 10:50 PM, said:

I dunno how "adult" we talking about, but I was certainly drinking fresh cow milk up to my early teens. And naturally soured milk is a delicacy back home (Ukraine) in the country, and has been a yoghurt substitute for ages- for both kids and adults.

How? Just how? Even the smell of it makes me nauseous. I have no problem with milk products - I eat upwards of 500 ml sour curd daily but plain milk is horrible

dunno, guess cuz I grew up with it?
Cereal and milk is the most common breakfast--though this is store-bought pasteurized milk, so I guess that wouldn't count. But yeah, when I was growing up, I'd spend at least a month every summer in the country with my grandmother, and so fresh milk was a staple, 2-3 times a day.

[Messremb]

My own direct family have no issues with any foodgroups or allergies (apart form one time I had hayfever is Turkey of all places, never happened since and a 2nd cousin who is gluten intolerant) which I like to think indicates a reasonably strong genetic base or a good exposure to dirt. Then of course I realise I'm the only diabetic in the family so I'm clearly the weak straw. I'd like to think it was down to a healthy diet as a child - I had my own corner of the veg patch for making a mess in and was treated with a bemused acceptance for eating worms, slugs and just plain soil. Although eating peas out the pod and leaving the empty pod on the plant was less amusing for my parents when they picked them...

My wife's family pretty much every relative on her fathers side has at least two major allergies/intolerances, be it eggs dairy fish etc. Luckily we have a big list of who is what from our wedding where we had made sure nothing would be missed out, down to individual cupcakes for those that couldn't touch our wedding cake.

I do note that the majority of people I know with food issues are those that grew up in a city be it London, Birmingham or Manchester they're all somewhat removed from the country (my car has another fresh layer of dust from the combine harvesting another field round our village yesterday which is a lot more rural than where I grew up) and generally people who have heard of country fairs but never been to one. Mrs Messremb is free from anything and fingers crossed for eventual baby 'rembs being the same.

Being the type of person I am I've already planned regular exposure to allergens because if giving them peanut butter (bleurgh yuk yuk yuk) once a month means there is a chance they'll not have to deal with it as an issue for the rest of their life then by the gods I'll make sure they eat some. Unfortunately I have not seen strong evidence either way so I'll be keeping an eye on thread to see if anyone noted any I am hoping for a major allergy to things like vegetables so that we don't have to pretend to like them for the childrens benefit. Obv. I'll be checking with people who have more idea when the time comes about things like precautions in case they do have a reaction to something but shortly I'm going to sit down and devise a cookie of some sort that combines every allergen group known to man. Obviously I'll need to produce lots of test batches and eat them all....

FWIW I have a pint of milk on my cornflakes every day. A lactose intolerance would probably kill me.

I am on an eventual mission to make a drinkable gluten-free beer for a lady friends husband who was diagnosed about 18 months ago and is seriously missing beer. Time to resurrect the Brewskis thread?

[Macros]

Is it also possibly partly to do with darwinism in humanity breaking down due to medical advances.
Extreme allergies can mean death, but with an epi pen they're suddenly managable, and so someone ho could have died young suddenly has a full normal life and can procreate?
Im also a big subscriber to the dirty environment for kids being good for them, I grew up on a farm we drank unpasteurised milk every day and always had animals and pets around us. I rarely got sick as a child. I rarely get sick now either.
My dad has developed a gluten intollerence whic baffles me, aa it only started about 5 years ago